


The Perfect Composition

by M_Renoir



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, No Proofreading We Die Like Men, could be romantic or platonic, established relationship (soooorta), im just a big gay mess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-09
Updated: 2018-11-09
Packaged: 2019-08-21 00:54:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16566488
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/M_Renoir/pseuds/M_Renoir
Summary: The scene inside was simultaneously completely expected and entirely unusual. RK900 stood in the center of his room, LED spinning bright red, staring at the wall with a look of intense concentration on his face. The room was, uncharacteristically, a mess. The wardrobe sat crooked in one corner while the window was cracked open just slightly. Most prominently, the painting Leo had gifted the android a day earlier, lay on the ground before the android.





	The Perfect Composition

The empty whiteness of his apartment had always been a point of pride for RK900. Even though his brother, Connor, often encouraged him to gain some personal belongings, he found himself preferring the stark cleanliness of an empty room. The housing complex was recently repurposed for androids to live in. Each room was a white box with a charging station and a single square window.

 

But ever since he entered into a partnership with the newly reformed Leo Manfred, he had slowly begun to accrue more and more items. Of course, he was entirely professional. The former addict had decided to turn a new leaf in recent years, following the death of his father, and was now in training to become a police officer. RK900 could never fathom why, but they were partnered up anyway, only a year after the revolution. Ever dutiful, he was assigned to ensure Leo’s safety and to make sure he did not suffer a relapse. There were many close calls, of course, and many, many rough days. None of that mattered as RK900 carefully arranged the painting on his wall. The painting depicted the android with his eyes closed, LED off. Based on the timing of the painting and its contents, the android assumed that it was conceived when he had invited himself into the Manfred mansion on the pretense of keeping an eye on Leo after a particularly bad episode.

 

He had entered stasis very late at night, though he had set himself an alarm system that would awaken him at the first sign of trouble. Apparently, his systems did not deem being drawn as enough movement to wake him.

 

The thought briefly crossed his mind that having a painting of himself prominently displayed as the sole decoration of the room could come across as vain. But where else would he place it? It would be a shame for such a beautiful gift to remain unnoticed and hidden away. He tilted the frame just so before stepping back from the painting. No… This was not right. The light caught it at all the wrong angles. His LED spinning yellow, he preconstructed several versions of his room, the painting hanging in a different place each time. Perhaps if he moved his wardrobe to the other side of the room…

 

\---

  
When RK900, ever punctual, did not show up for work, Leo was understandably worried. The android was _never_ late. Something must have happened.

 

After questioning (accosting) several fellow officers, Leo concluded that his partner had most definitely not shown up to work. In fact, no one had seen him since yesterday, when he left. Leo was the last one to see RK900, after he hurriedly (and silently) offered RK900 a portrait that he had painted. Deciding once and for all, he hurried out of the station and to his car.

 

Arriving at the apartment complex, Leo as good as sprinted to RK900’s door, shifting his weight side to side as he anxiously waited for the elevator to reach the 10th floor (RK900 had been very adamant about being given a ‘nice and round numbered’ floor, whatever that meant). The first apartment was his--1001. Without even knocking, Leo slapped his hand on the handprint scanner and burst inside as soon as he could.

 

The scene inside was simultaneously completely expected and entirely unusual. RK900 stood in the center of his room, LED spinning bright red, staring at the wall with a look of intense concentration on his face. The room was, uncharacteristically, a mess. The wardrobe sat crooked in one corner while the window was cracked open just slightly. Most prominently, the painting Leo had gifted the android a day earlier, lay on the ground before the android.

 

“Uh… RK?” he asked hesitantly. One hand gingerly tapped the android’s shoulder. RK900 jumped as if electrocuted and turned towards Leo, his LED blinking rapidly.

 

“Leo! I--I apologize, I did not realize you had come inside.” As if snapping out of some coma, the android blinked and returned to gazing at the wall, with brief glances at the painting at his feet.

 

“What’s up with all this?” Leo asked, glancing skeptically around the room. “You’re usually super neurotic about disorganization and all that stuff, and you’re _always_ on time. What the hell has gotten into you today?”

 

“I… I sincerely apologize, Officer Manfred,” RK900 repeated, still staring at the wall. “Last night, I attempted to find a place for your painting. But no matter where I placed it in my room, I found that some factor or another would disturb my ability to pleasantly view the painting. I could not rest until I found the right place for it, but… I am afraid that I have tried almost every single combination of object placements within my room, and nothing has worked.” His brow furrowed, a sign of genuine distress that Leo had come to recognize by now. “I a--”

 

“There’s no need to apologize, RK,” Leo replied, a small laugh bubbling to his lips. “You don’t have to put the painting up. Just stick it in your closet or something, it’s nothing special.” RK900 turned to face Leo, his face still pulled into a frown.

 

“It is to me,” he replied before turning back to the wall.

 

Leo blinked. Important to him? He realized a little belatedly that RK900 had probably never received a gift before, at least not from someone he wasn’t practically family with. Helk, he had almost zero decoration in his room. The wardrobe was a gift from Hank, and all the additional outfits he had aside from his uniform were painstakingly picked out by Connor when the two brothers had gone clothes shopping. All of those things served some practical purpose, which was likely why RK900 had accepted them in the first place. The painting was different. A sudden heady rush of emotion squeezed in Leo’s chest. It was somehow incredibly sad and incredibly sweet that RK900 was spending so much time trying to decide where the painting should go.

 

“How about I do it?” he suggested after a moment. “And maybe, uh… If you’re okay with it, I can help you decorate a little more.”

 

RK900 turned back towards Leo, a look of neutral surprise on his face (Leo knew, however, that this face was as good as seeing his jaw drop). “I have already turned down multiple suggestions from both Hank and my older brother,” the android replied steadily. Leo’s heart sank. So he wouldn’t.

 

“However,” RK900 continued, “I would not be… Opposed to this idea. It would certainly make the color balance in my room more pleasing.” Leo noticed that at some point during the exchange, RK900’s LED had blinked from red to yellow. The android bent down to pick up the painting, striding forward with confident steps and placing it on the wall. “If I were to, for example, acquire a potted plant to place in juxtaposition to--”

 

“Alright, alright, RK, don’t get ahead of yourself,” Leo cut in, his voice tinged with relief. “Let’s get to work first. Then we can think about the rest.” RK900 nodded, his LED finally spinning blue.

 

“You’re right. We are dreadfully late.” He took one glance back towards his room and quickly walked over to his wardrobe, pushing it just slightly so it stood straight. “I cannot, however, leave my room in such a state--”

 

“RK!”

**Author's Note:**

> Yeah so Leo900 is apparently a severely underrated ship, I'd like to thank my friend Mav on Discord for introducing me to his interpretation of Leo. We have a lot of cute shit planned tbh and this is how I interpret this scene going?
> 
> Edit, 1/6/2019: I changed the word count so it'd be exactly 1234 words long.


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